With You
by AerinM
Summary: A place for me to dump all of my odd, one-off Brackendra drabbles and oneshots. Warrenessa will probably make occasional appearances as well. Fluff galore. No real plot, just fluff.
1. Family

_I promise I will update In The Darkness soon. I just needed to write some Brackendra fluff because muses. Please enjoy._

* * *

He leans on the side of the doorway and watches her with a contented smile on his face. She's sitting on the couch in their living room, surrounded by family members who are fussing over her or exchanging funny stories with each other. A peal of her laughter rings out and he knows his smile isn't going anywhere for a long time yet.

She's so beautiful. She's always been radiant, but now there's something… _softer_ about her shining aura. She's happy, relaxed, at peace. The depth of his feelings for her can't be put into words. He feels drawn to her at all times, like a moth to a flame, except he knows she'd never burn him - which makes her all that much more irresistible. How did he ever get so lucky as to meet her? To court her? To marry her?

Marla notices his presence in the doorway and beckons him closer. She swats at Seth's knee and makes him move away from Kendra so that Bracken can sit next to his wife. Bracken opens his mouth to insist that Seth is fine to remain where he had been sitting, but Kendra's eyes light up as she reaches her arms out for him and he finds that he can't resist her unspoken request for snuggles. He sits down next to her and places one arm around her shoulders while his other hand moves to hover over her bulging belly for a moment. There is a life in there. He can feel it, and his smile grows ever wider even as he marvels over the miracle he has been witnessing over the past several months. Kendra places her head in the crook of his neck and covers his hand with hers, resting both of them directly on her swollen abdomen. Bracken feels a quick bump against his palm, followed closely by another one and then another. He kisses Kendra's forehead and feels her relax against him.

He is happy here. His life is full. Full of family and friends, of laughter and love and peace. Of hope and promise for the future. He cherishes it.

Not for the first time, and certainly not for the last, Bracken again takes a moment to truly appreciate just how wonderful life can be. He holds Kendra a little closer. She looks up at him with a contented expression on her face and he knows. He knows he would never willingly give up this life for anything else.

* * *

He holds his baby girl in his arms as she lightly cries, speaking softly to her and gently stroking her face with his fingers. She calms herself beneath his touch and opens one eye for a moment, peering up at him briefly before closing it again. Her eyes are surprisingly dark – a trait she definitely did not inherit from him, but then he supposes she is allowed to look like Kendra's family in at least _some_ ways after all.

She is wrapped up in a swaddle and he holds her close to his chest as he rocks her from side to side. He starts to hum a tune from his own childhood to her, and it's not long before she's fallen asleep. His heart is full. Fuller than he could have imagined it ever becoming. She is so tiny, so innocent, so _perfect_. A brand-new life, and she's been entrusted into his care. He will watch over her as she grows. He will teach her what he knows. He will protect and treasure and adore her forever.

Kendra stirs in their bed, eventually rolls onto her side and looks at him through half-lidded, thoroughly exhausted eyes. "Is she asleep?" she asks.

"Yes," he answers. He stands and walks the few strides it takes to get to his wife's side, his daughter still cradled in his arms. "You're beautiful," he tells Kendra, kissing her forehead and brushing some of her hair out of her face. "Go back to sleep. It's late, and you need rest."

"You should sleep, too," Kendra replies slowly, her tiredness clearly evident in her voice.

"I can't stop staring at her," Bracken responds, smiling contentedly as he gazes once more at the baby's face. "She's perfect." He sits on the edge of the bed.

Kendra smiles. "She _is_ , isn't she?" She opens her eyes a little wider to simply watch as Bracken watches their child. His expression exudes pure, open adoration and she is in awe of him. He truly loves this hours-old infant.

Eventually Kendra begins to fall back to sleep, but not before she touches Bracken's arm and requests snuggles. Bracken smiles at her and walks to the other side of the bed, pushes back the covers and lowers himself onto the mattress. He holds his daughter in the crook of his left arm and wraps his right arm around Kendra, who curls up into his side and falls asleep quickly.

As Bracken lays there, with the two most precious people in his life on either side of him, he feels at peace. He drifts off to sleep feeling warm and contented.

* * *

 _I started a tumblr account - aerinmelina is me. :) I'll post drabbles and maybe occasional oneshots there - I'll probably post them here periodically as well. I love prompts, so feel free to make a request and I'll see what I can do. This grouping of drabbles and such is meant to be nothing but fluff, and will probably be a disjointed collection of short writings which will likely wind up having nothing or not much to do with each other when all is said and done._


	2. Surprise

_So an anon by the name of Christian gave me this prompt and omgosh I RAN WITH IT. Probably totally wasn't what you had in mind, Christian, but here you go! Thank you for the idea, this was fun! :) I hope you like it!_

* * *

He doesn't really remember _when_ it started, exactly. One night he had had a bad dream, and upon waking he had used his magic to get a feel for her vital signs. To reassure himself that she was alive, that she was with him, that he wasn't alone, that he hadn't lost her. It was such a small thing, and really it was kind of silly if he thought about it long enough, but it had comforted him to be able to hear her heart beating and feel the flow of her blood through her veins. He hadn't disturbed her slumber, so it's not like he'd harmed her in any way – not that he ever _would_ harm her, of course.

After that one instance, he had started to check her over every so-often while she slept. It was a short and simple process, didn't even involve touching her, and she always slept right through it anyway. He doubted that she even knew he'd formed a habit of periodically making sure she was alive while subsequently confirming that his life wasn't just a dream.

Tonight is different, though. It's the first time in quite a long time when he has a nightmare. He wakes and sits up in bed, shaking his head to try and rid it of the images and negative emotions swirling around inside. It works, but he's left feeling unsettled. He remembers fire and screaming and the scent of burning. He remembers feeling helpless as she is swallowed by flames. He remembers feeling agony of body and soul.

He looks at Kendra and finds her sleeping, her face filled with nothing but peace.

He hasn't checked her in a few weeks, and the desire to just be certain that she is indeed alright overcomes his senses. _She's breathing. Of course she's okay._ He still lays back down in bed, scoots closer to her, and since she's laying on her side facing him, he hovers his hand over her shoulder and concentrates as his palm glows a soft blue.

She breathes in and out. He can feel the function of her lungs and the beating of her heart. Her blood thrums through her veins as normal. She is resting and her body is functioning as it should. He relaxes and decides to withdraw his hand when he suddenly senses something… different.

Bracken blinks and the glowing stops as his concentration breaks. _Wait,_ he thinks. _Wait._

He hovers his hand over the dip of her waist and focuses once more. His eyes close.

There's an extra heartbeat.

It's very small, very faint, but he hears it. Another heartbeat. A _tiny_ heartbeat. And along with that heartbeat comes an incredible sense of creation from within Kendra's body.

His concentration breaks once more as he fully withdraws his hand and gapes open-mouthed at his love. They had hoped for _years_. They had prayed and cried and agonized and mourned together. They had eventually made a sort of peace with their inability to have children. There'd never been a unicorn-human relationship which had borne offspring before; yet now here they are, with a tiny life growing inside of Kendra.

He is suddenly overcome with a swirl of wild emotions, and it takes everything within him to _not_ shake Kendra awake and kiss her and cry tears of joy and just hold her and never let go.

 _Why hasn't she told me yet? Is she afraid for some reason? Why would she be afraid?_

And then another thought occurs to Bracken.

 _Does she know? Is she even aware?_

An enormous smile breaks across his face, and he gives up any potential notion of being able to fall back to sleep. He's been given a tremendous opportunity and he won't waste it. Unfortunately, he also is not the best at keeping surprises very secret for long stints, and Kendra is notoriously wonderful at sensing when something is even slightly off (it probably comes with the territory of being Seth's sister), so he knows he's pressed for time to plan something before Kendra eventually needles it out of him.

He rolls out of bed, leaps to his feet, hastily grabs some regular clothes and replaces his pajamas with them, then runs out into their living room and throws shoes on his feet before dashing out the door. This will be a morning they will forever remember.

* * *

Kendra stretches as she wakes, then lazily glances over to Bracken's side of the bed per her usual morning routine. He isn't there, which isn't altogether strange – he often wakes before she does, and when that happens he likes to sit out on their back porch with a cup of tea and watch and mingle with the fairies who visit their yard as he enjoys the crisp morning air.

She rolls onto her side and eventually pulls herself out of bed. She's by no means a late riser – a brief glance at the watch on her nightstand tells her it's seven o'clock in the morning – but she definitely feels lazier in the mornings than at other times of the day. Yawning as she stands up, she reaches for her robe and wraps herself up in its warmth. She steps into a pair of slippers and leaves her bedroom.

Eventually she makes it to the kitchen, where she heads to the stove and turns on a burner in order to heat the kettle. Peppermint tea sounds good to her this morning, so she busies herself about the kitchen in order to prepare a mug of it for herself. While she waits for the water to boil, she gazes out the kitchen windows and looks for Bracken on the back porch, but doesn't see him there. Her eyebrows crease together a little as she wonders where he's at, but she's not truly concerned for his safety.

The kettle starts to squeal and Kendra removes it from the heat. She deposits a tea bag into her favorite mug, pours water in, adds a little cream and honey, grabs a book she's been reading lately and then retreats to the back porch herself to sit and relax for a while.

She loses herself in the story she's reading – it's an adventure centered around Greek mythology, and she's enthralled by the characters and the plotline. Before she knows it, it's been two hours and she's only pulled out of her story because she hears the front door of her house open and close. Years of training have fine-tuned a lot of her senses, and a touch of caution causes her to quietly set her book aside as she turns to gaze through the screen door of her back porch into the interior of her house.

Bracken is walking toward her carrying a small box. She smiles at him as she relaxes back into her chair, but then she sits back up again and quirks an eyebrow at the box he's holding (as well as at his general demeanor). Bracken can't stop grinning, and she's not sure _why_. Why is he bringing her a gift? Their anniversary was two months ago, and today isn't a holiday that Kendra is otherwise aware of. Maybe this was just one of his spontaneous gift-giving days. He did like to occasionally surprise her with something he found while he was out and about. Yet another thing to add to the long list of reasons why Bracken was amazing.

He joins her out on the back porch and greets her with a kiss on her forehead. She yanks his face down so she can kiss his cheek without her having to stand up, then asks curiously, "What's got you all cheery this morning?"

"I have a surprise for you," he answers, then gives her the box. It is a neat brown package and is tied with a simple white string. There are no labels on it. She moves to shake it in an effort to guess what it is and Bracken immediately grabs her hands to stop her. "Please don't ruin it."

"Ahh. So it can be broken by shaking. But it's so light, it couldn't be glass…" She furrows her eyebrows as she puzzles over what it could be.

"How about you open it and find out?" Bracken asks, only somewhat patiently waiting for her to open it.

Interesting. Bracken is excited for her to open it, and it is fragile. What on earth…?

She decides to pull the simple bow in the string at the top of the box, then removes the string altogether and places it beside her. The lid of the box is attached to the bottom of it – like something you'd find from a bakery. She immediately thinks of pastries and realizes she forgot to eat breakfast. Kendra opens the lid of the box and then freezes.

There are four cupcakes inside the box, each a different pastel color. Yellow, green, blue and pink. Each cupcake has a small, decorative plastic baby rattle on top of the colored frosting.

Confusion floods Kendra's face. "What are these for?" she asks. "Are we going to a last-minute baby shower later today or something?"

Bracken just smiles and hands her another gift. This one is very small and kind of squishy. He's wrapped it with simple brown paper. She looks at her husband incredulously as she sets the cupcakes next to her book on the small table beside her chair, still thoroughly confused. "I don't get it. What's going on?" she asks. He just chuckles and tells her to open the present.

Kendra unwraps the gift and again pauses. It's a pastel yellow onesie for a baby. She looks up at Bracken and asks, "Why are you giving me baby things?" He notices the hurt laced in her tone of voice – ah, so she _doesn't_ know – then unfurls the onesie and shows it to Kendra. "Read this," he says.

Her eyes fill with tears as she reads the message. _I love Mommy_. "This isn't funny," she insists.

He kneels down in front of her, his torso flat against her knees and shins, and reaches for her hands. A smile is still plastered to his face, however his body language is filled with compassion. "Kendra, you're pregnant," he tells her softly, kissing her hands.

She stiffens and her eyes grow wide. They're still very watery. "That's not possible," she denies.

Bracken continues to hold her hands even as she tries to pull them out of his grasp. "It's true," he says. "You're pregnant. I heard the baby's heartbeat this morning myself. I promise – I swear with _everything_ that is in me – Kendra, you are pregnant and we are going to be parents."

The tears in her eyes start to fall. She sniffles and after a moment she asks, "You're not lying?"

"I'm not," he says, beginning to tear up himself, his smile still present. He releases her hands and embraces her. "I promise, Kendra, I am not lying to you."

A part of her starts to hope. It's hard for her to allow herself to believe him – she had hoped for so long, there had been so many times she had believed she was pregnant only to find out that she wasn't, and her heart had hurt every single time she had been wrong. But Bracken has never lied to her before. He's been incorrect about various things in the past, true, but he hasn't lied to her, and she knows that he has the ability to assess health conditions for healing purposes. It's not that far of a stretch to believe that if he can hear her own heartbeat, he could also hear the heartbeat of a child within an expectant mother.

They hold each other while they cry. Bracken laughs through happy tears, repeatedly telling her that they are going to be parents, and Kendra is just a confused mess of tears.

After a few minutes, she pulls away from him and wipes her eyes with the sleeves of her robe. "What made you think to check whether or not I was _pregnant_ of all things?" Kendra asks incredulously.

"I dreamt… I had a nightmare," he explains. "I failed to protect you. When I woke, I just… I wanted to reassure myself that you were alright. I discovered our baby by accident."

Kendra wills herself to return his smile. "We're really having a baby?"

"We're really having a baby," he confirms excitedly, standing up and pulling her up with him. Once she is also standing, he lifts her up and spins around in a circle, then places her back on her feet and holds her close to his chest.

His excitement is so real. His smile and his happiness are real. Genuine. And it is this which finally convinces her that she could truly be pregnant, beyond all reason, beyond every possibility. She clings to him, then suddenly steps out of his embrace and slaps his arm.

"You idiot," she says in mock annoyance. " _I'm_ supposed to be the one to tell _you_ that I'm pregnant! Not the other way around! That's the way we do things!"

He laughs. "Sorry," he responds, still laughing.

"You fail at being human," she insists, stepping toward him again and wrapping her arms around his waist. "But I guess it's a good thing you're not one."

All Bracken can do is continue to laugh as he holds Kendra. Eventually, she starts to laugh with him.

* * *

 _Let me know what you think, please! :) Also, I love prompts... feel free to send some more my way! I'll do my best to respond to everyone's requests._

 _To "Guest"... I'll do my best. :) I may hold off on that one for a while, though, because spoiler reasons for other things. I'll give it careful thought._


	3. Something Beachy

This was meant for the "Always" universe. :) I had had this idea back then, but couldn't figure out a way to fit it into that particular series and ultimately decided to scrap it. It's not necessary to read _Always_ before reading this.

Kendra's 19 here. This would be an event that took place between chapters 15 and 16 (if you noticed in the original story, there's like a 3- or 4-year jump between those two chapters).

* * *

It had been a good day. The usual residents of Fablehaven had taken a vacation to Florida for the week, and today had been spent at the beach. Blue skies, sandcastles, beachcombing, a game of tag in the water, volleyball on the sand, and general silliness had ensued for the entire day.

Warren, Dale and Vanessa had steadily become more and more tan as the day progressed, while Seth turned pink and Kendra could _feel_ her legs burning. She was sure her sunblock had washed off in the water and, despite Grandma and Grandpa Sorenson's persistent reminders throughout the day to reapply the lotion, she'd forgotten about it amidst all of the fun they'd all been having. Oh well, nothing much to be done about it now. The sun was setting and would soon sink below the horizon.

"This sunset is absolutely beautiful," Bracken's voice carried to her from a few feet away. He was walking toward her and, once he arrived, he sat down next to her on the sand to watch the scene with her.

She smiled widely at him. He'd had a gloriously good day jumping over waves, running into and out of the water, and just generally basking in the sunlight while he'd goofed around with everyone else. Kendra didn't think she'd ever seen him grin and laugh this much in the past four years she'd known him. "Today has been amazing," she replied back to him, digging her toes into the sand in front of her.

Bracken made a noise of assent and then leaned over and kissed her cheek. Kendra giggled in response and her boyfriend sat back up with a cheeky smile on his face. She scooted closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder while he put his arm around her waist and leaned his head on top of hers. "I'm so glad your grandparents invited me to come. This is incredible. I haven't felt this carefree in… I don't even know how long."

"They love you," Kendra told him. "We all do. I'm glad you could be here, too."

The couple resorted to sitting together in silence as they watched the sun streak the sky a variety of oranges, pinks and purples; it truly was a breathtaking sight. There was only a slight breeze coming from the direction of the water in front of them, it was a pleasantly warm evening, the sand was as soft as baby powder, and the waves crashing upon the shore were gentle. All in all, it was a perfect, peaceful evening in paradise.

So _of_ _course_ someone had to ruin it. Because why not.

"Hey you two, no funny business," Warren's voice interjected as he forcibly separated Bracken and Kendra and sat himself down between them. Kendra protested and Bracken asked what his friend was doing, but all Warren did was smile innocently at each of them and say, "Wow, what a beautiful sunset! Sure is romantic, isn't it?"

Kendra was about to respond with an additional complaint when another noise ripped the peaceful atmosphere to shreds.

"DALE BURGESS – DON'T YOU DARE – YOU PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!"

She turned around to see that Dale had flung Vanessa over his shoulder and was heading right toward the water. Vanessa whacked his back and laughed freely as she continued to half-heartedly insist that he put her down. Warren started to laugh, then suddenly seemed to realize something as he stood up and ran toward his brother as he shouted, "Hey, wait a minute! That's _my_ girlfriend, not yours! If anyone's going to drop her in the ocean, it should be _me!_ "

Bracken and Kendra laughed as they moved back together and watched the three adults' antics. "Something's up with him," Kendra stated, then she narrowed her eyes as she stared at Warren and Dale with sudden scrutiny.

"What are you thinking?" Bracken asked her, noticing her expression.

She held up her hand to her side in a gesture for him to be quiet, and then her eyes grew large as she looked Bracken in the face and said, "Dale has something in his pocket."

To her surprise, Bracken smirked and looked back toward the trio. "You are so observant," he said, shaking his head as his smirk turned into a smile. "Nothing gets past you."

"You _knew_ about this!?" she kind of quiet-shouted, suddenly starting to feel excited.

"Knew about what?" Seth asked, walking over to his sister. His attention had been drawn away from the hole he'd been digging in the sand by the sudden flutter of activity among the adults. Kendra shushed him and pointed over to where Dale had finally set a grinning, still laughing Vanessa down on her feet in the shallow water. He pulled something small out of his pocket and handed it to his brother, then backed away from them. Vanessa started to head back toward where she had initially been sitting on a towel on the sand before she'd been picked up, but Warren grabbed her wrist to stop her and catch her attention. She turned toward him and he knelt down in front of her.

"We're too far away – I can't hear what he's saying!" Kendra squeaked, trying to be quiet in case she'd be able to catch some of Warren's words at all, but too thrilled to remain still. Vanessa screeched and then flung her arms around Warren and knocked them both backwards and into the water.

That was all Kendra could handle. She leapt to her feet and tore off down the beach with a million questions and a ton of general excitement at the forefront of her mind. When she reached Vanessa and Warren, she gathered them both in a huge embrace and demanded to see the ring which Vanessa gladly showed off.

"Nice," Seth said, opting to sit next to Bracken in Kendra's absence. He turned toward the unicorn to say something, however Bracken beat him to it.

"When she graduates," he said. "Assuming she still wants to be with me."

Seth smirked and relaxed back on his elbows, crossing his legs in front of him. "Okay," the younger man stated. "I've waited this long. What's another few years?"

Bracken rolled his eyes and shook his head as he replied, "You are seriously way too invested in your sister's love life."


	4. Reunion

_So... it has occurred to me that I am posting way more stories/oneshots on tumblr than I am here... so I am now trying to play catch-up! LOL._

 _This particular ficlet corresponds with artwork done by Fairykam, which I've made the cover image for this story collection. She is so amazing!_

* * *

 _ **Reunion**_

She ran to him.

He must've somehow freed himself amid the scuffle and resulting confusion. He was a little battered, his clothes were worn out and torn in a few places, and he was doing an awkward, limping walk/jog mix in an obvious attempt to flee from wherever he'd come as quickly as he possibly could. He looked exhausted, dirty, and in desperate need of lovingkindness.

Kendra didn't think he'd ever looked better to her. Finally, after months of anxiety-riddled separation, _finally_ they'd found him.

Bracken stopped moving forward as soon as he spotted her, and instead braced himself for imminent impact. A disbelieving smile graced his face and, when she threw her arms around him, he paused for a moment – was this _actually_ happening, or was he only dreaming again? – before quickly deciding to frantically return her embrace. She felt real. She looked real. He could smell her strawberry shampoo.

He started to laugh a little, prompting Kendra to pull away from him and look him over worriedly. She asked him about his injuries and threw her coat around his arms as he shook; she assumed he was cold, but his shaking was actually due to sheer emotion. He pulled her back toward his chest again, holding her close as tears of relief flowed from her eyes.

How could he explain to her how _dark_ the world had been without her? How could he describe his fears and worries to her? How could he tell her that she was his beacon of light, his pillar of hope and symbol of all things bright and good, and now that she'd entered his life, he didn't want to ever have her exit? His previous imprisonment had lasted several hundred years; he'd had no idea how long this one would last. He didn't know if he would ever see her again, or if she'd still be alive by the time he was able to get free. He'd agonized over the idea that he wouldn't be able to hold her like this again.

Yet here they were. She was rescuing him from the darkness once more.

Bracken's relieved chuckles quickly transformed into tears as he continued to hold her close, her coat somewhat awkwardly wrapped around his shoulders. They stood like that for at least a full minute, each of them simply absorbed in soaking up the other's presence, before Kendra prompted him to start moving again, back toward safety. Out of the dungeon and back into the light.


	5. The Great Gifting War

_Enjoy my late contribution for Valentine's Day. :) Warrenessa and Brackendra are featured here._

* * *

 _The_ _Great Gifting War_ had begun two years ago when Warren had given Vanessa a bouquet of flowers and a heartfelt card for Valentine's Day and Bracken showed him up by giving Kendra a weekend trip to a mineral hot spring a few hours away from home.

Vanessa had been green with envy.

Warren _hated_ it.

So he vowed to do better next time.

When Vanessa's birthday came along, Warren had her dress to the nines and took her out for a fancy dinner.

When Kendra's birthday came along, Bracken took her out ballroom dancing and coordinated a surprise party for her which involved the entire family.

Warren gave Vanessa an expensive necklace for Christmas.

Bracken gave Kendra one of those charts which showed what the night sky looked like on the evening they first met, along with a pair of impossibly sparkly – were those _diamonds?_ – earrings. Which, of course, were also magical. Because why not.

It'd been like that ever since. Warren would give Vanessa something thought-out and meaningful, and Bracken would upstage him. _This_ Valentine's Day, however, he was going to win. He _had_ to win.

"Seth," Warren began when he found his cousin in the kitchen by himself.

"What's up?" Seth responded.

"Do you know what Bracken is getting Kendra for Valentine's Day this year?"

Seth looked at him strangely. "This is about your weird gift-giving competition, isn't it?"

"What gift-giving competition?"

Warren's cousin rolled his eyes. "You know, where you try and give Vanessa something incredible and then Bracken outshines you so you try and get her something even better at the next opportunity? _That_ competition?"

"I knew it. I _knew_ he was doing it on purpose," Warren stated, pounding once on the countertop with his closed fist.

Seth shook his head. "No. He isn't. He just thinks it's weird that you glare at him every holiday."

"How does he _not_ _know_ that this is a war!?"

The younger man shrugged. "You know he doesn't always pick up on social cues. Especially when all you're doing is _glaring_ at him. Have you tried _talking_ to him?"

Warren looked at Seth like the kid had grown a third eye. "Why would I do _that?_ "

Seth rolled his eyes again and let out a sigh which emphasized his feelings of exacerbation. "Well, have you tried talking to _Vanessa?_ "

Warren looked at Seth like he'd grown a fourth eye. "That's even more bizarre than your first suggestion."

Seth placed his empty glass in the sink – he'd been drinking water while they'd been talking – and then turned to exit the kitchen. "Whatever, Warr. Good luck with your one-sided battle."

Well. _That_ conversation had been fruitless.

* * *

Two days later, Valentine's Day arrived. Warren had planned to get up early in order to make breakfast for Vanessa and serve it to her in bed, however his alarm clock didn't go off and instead she'd been the one to serve _him_ with breakfast. Which, okay, he was disappointed, but then when she leaned in to kiss him after she set the tray of food down on top of their dresser and he caught sight of something black and lacey underneath her sleep shirt, he quickly set those feelings aside. (He found out later that Vanessa had made a point to turn off his alarm early that morning.)

The day was spent like any other regular day at Fablehaven – with him working alongside his brother and Seth on the preserve while Vanessa left for the day to go to the job she'd picked up a little over a year ago as a veterinary assistant. She'd dropped Jack, their son, off at daycare on her way out in the morning. Warren had flowers and balloons sent to her at work, and was pleased when she sent him a text message consisting mainly of hearts and cute smiley faces.

And then she sent him another one.

 _Nessa: I have something special planned for you tonight. ;)_ _Suit up, we're going out._

 _Warren: Oh? What if I already had plans for you?_

 _Nessa: Reschedule them._

 _Warren: :(_

 _Nessa: Don't be sad. Please?_

 _Warren: :( :(_

 _Nessa: Warren, please. I promise this'll be something you'll like._

 _Warren: :( Alriiiiight. But you owe me one. I get to be the one to take you out soon._

He could practically _hear_ the exasperation in her next message.

 _Nessa: Seriously? You always plan things for Valentine's Day. Let me be the one to take you out for once._

 _Warren: Fine._

 _Nessa: Don't be like that. I'll be home about 5:30. Our reservations are for 6:30. I'll need to do a quick run in and freshen up, then leave type of thing. Please be ready to go. It'll take us probably about 40 minutes to drive there._

 _Warren: Aye aye captain._

 _Nessa: Compare me to a pirate again and you'll be the one with a missing eye._

 _Warren: Message received._

 _Nessa: I love you. 3_

 _Warren: Yeah, yeah. Just come home. I miss you. 3_

 _Warren: I feel gloomy without you around._

 _Warren: You are the sunshine which brightens my day and brings light into my heart._

 _Warren: …_

 _Warren: Too much sap?_

 _Nessa: Too much sap._

Warren smiled and put his phone back in his pocket, then frowned and pinched the bridge of his nose. He'd planned to take Vanessa out for dinner and dessert that night, but then she'd supplanted his plans in favor of hers. Again. All he had for her now was a card with some bedroom coupons in it.

There was no way he'd win the Valentine's Day battle against Bracken this time.

Another holiday bites the dust…

* * *

The car ride into town was… interesting. When Vanessa had said she'd made plans, he hadn't expected that she'd made plans in cahoots with Kendra. The four of them – Vanessa, Kendra, Bracken and Warren – all piled into one car and drove off to have dinner together. The women sat in front and happily chatted all the way into town, with Bracken occasionally joining in and otherwise sending concerned looks toward Warren, who was oddly quiet.

The restaurant itself was a very nice one. Situated right next to a river, it was the type of place that just reeked of romance as soon as they walked in the door. Low overhead lighting and candles at every table, pristine white tablecloths, slender vases holding fresh red roses, a live violinist, and waitstaff who wore crisp black and white suits. It was, honestly, probably better than the place Warren had originally booked for the two of them to go to.

Great. Another competitor in _The_ _Great Gifting War_.

Vanessa and Kendra excused themselves to the restroom once they'd been seated and had placed their dinner orders, which left Bracken and Warren at the table by themselves. Bracken wore a relaxed smile on his face as he looked around the restaurant at the other occupants and the area in general.

"What'd you get Kendra for Valentine's Day?" Warren asked, drawing Bracken's attention.

"I gave her a bracelet earlier. What did you wind up giving Vanessa?"

"Well I was going to take her out for a nice dinner, but she decided to upend my plans and make it a double date instead," he replied.

Bracken gazed at his friend intently. "What's been bothering you?"

"Bothering me? Nothing's bothering me. Why?"

"You've been quiet."

"I don't know, I guess it just sucks to have your romantic plans be uprooted."

The unicorn gestured around the room at large. "This is a nice place. It's very romantic. Our ladies chose a lovely venue for this evening. Why not enjoy it?" The relaxed smile he'd worn earlier adorned his face once more.

Warren sat up straighter and rested his right arm on the empty chair next to him, then gestured to Bracken with his left hand. "You're too perfect for your own good."

"Excuse me. What?"

"You. You're sensitive but not _too_ sensitive, you're charismatic, honest, inherently trustworthy, a leader, and you're a freaking _Hufflepuff_. I mean, who doesn't love _Hufflepuffs?_ "

Bracken was thoroughly confused. "Hufflepuff? What does that have to do with anything?"

"You're also the best gift-giver anyone's ever seen. Especially me. I mean… how am I supposed to compete with you?" Warren picked at the tablecloth in front of him with his left hand, trying to wipe away some clearly non-existent dust.

"Wait… you think gift-giving is a competition?" Bracken raised his eyebrows. " _Why?_ "

"You can't seriously tell me that you haven't been trying to one-up me every holiday," Warren stated flatly. "It's painfully obvious."

"I honestly have no idea what you're talking about."

"Come on, man. I get something nice for Vanessa, you get something nicer for Kendra. That's how you operate. Every holiday, for at least the past two years."

Bracken paused before he responded. "Is _that_ why you've made a habit of glaring at me every holiday?"

"Seriously? You didn't know?"

"Didn't know what? That I've apparently been engaging in a gifting battle of all things?" he let out a long exhale. "I don't understand – why would the gifts I have been giving to Kendra make _you_ uncomfortable?"

"Because… because I know Vanessa wants that kind of thought and attention from _me_. Because I keep trying to give her things that I know she'll like, and then you swoop in and give Kendra something better. It… it feels like it _cheapens_ my gift, somehow."

"Warren. I promise that I have not been trying to… _upstage_ or otherwise 'one-up' you. I simply adore Kendra, and one of the ways I show her my love is to give her things. She likes to receive thoughtful gifts; it's one of the ways she feels love. You and Vanessa are different. Vanessa doesn't care much for material things. She'd rather spend time with you. Haven't you noticed?"

Warren looked at his friend as he mulled over what had been said. "Continue," he prompted after several seconds had passed.

"I don't really know what else to say," Bracken answered. "People feel and express love in different ways. Vanessa cares about spending time with the people she loves; that's why she makes sure to spend her free time with you and with other people she cares about. You feel love through touch; it's why you appreciate hugs and throwing your arms around people's shoulders and giving fist-bumps and probably other activities involving touch which I don't want to elaborate on here." He blushed a little and cleared his throat. "My point is, Vanessa appreciates gifts like anyone else would, but that's not the main way she feels and understands love. You simply spending time with her is how she knows you love her."

"Hmm. How do you know all of this?" Warren was genuinely curious.

"I've lived a long time, Warren. I've observed a lot of people and a lot of different types of relationships. After a while, I started to notice trends in people's personalities. It gets easier to pick up on with practice." Bracken chuckled. "I may not be the most socially fluent person to ever walk this planet, but I can be pretty observant from time to time. Vanessa smiles when you're near. Her face lights up when she sees you. You're her favorite person to be around."

"Who knew that our resident unicorn was a love expert?" Warren teased.

"Love expert? _Him?_ " Vanessa asked as she and Kendra returned to the table. She looked at Warren incredulously.

"He is," Kendra agreed as she sat next to Bracken and wrapped her hands around one of his arms. She planted a kiss on his cheek and smiled sweetly at him.

Bracken looked at Kendra as though she were the only thing in existence. And, when Warren turned his head, he found Vanessa looking back at himself in a similar fashion.

"He's right, you know," Vanessa whispered as she leaned in closer to Warren. "I appreciate every present you've ever given me, but the best gifts you give are gifts of your time."

Warren grinned at her.

"Don't make it weird," Vanessa warned.

He continued to grin.

She sighed. "Alright, it's weird."

"Who knew that beneath that tough exterior, Vanessa Santoro is a big softie on the inside?"

"Shut up, Warren. You've made it weird."

Kendra sat up in her chair and interrupted before Warren could form another response. "Actually, Vanessa and I have an announcement we'd like to make."

"Oh? What's that?" Bracken's attention had been caught. So had Warren's, for that matter.

"We unknowingly gave you both kind of the same gift for Valentine's Day," Vanessa smirked, however there was a happy gleam in her eyes. "So we thought it'd be fun to make this a double date and inform you of your presents at the same time."

"Okay, now I'm really curious," Warren chimed in.

The women looked at each other and smiled, then looked at their husbands and said at the same time, "We're pregnant."

Bracken was out of his chair in a heartbeat. He picked Kendra up and crushed her in a tight embrace, tears forming in his eyes as Kendra giggled and also started to become emotional when she looked up and saw his expression.

Warren grabbed Vanessa's hands and held them to his chest. "Really?" he asked her, a look of wonder crossing his face.

"Yes," Vanessa answered as she smiled.

He pulled her into a hug as well and kissed her. Vanessa was the one to terminate their public display of affection; she leaned back, then folded her arms and looked sideways at Warren. "So… do I win?"

"Win what?" Warren wasn't following her train of thought.

She smirked at him. " _The_ _Great Gifting War_." She let that sink in for a moment. "Did I win?"

"Wait… you _knew_ about that?"

"What? A gifting war?" Kendra questioned, her face scrunched up in confusion.

"It's a long story," Bracken said, still holding Kendra in his arms. "I'll explain it to you later."

"What's there to explain?" Vanessa teased. "Warren's been in a stupid contest with himself for the past couple of years, trying to out-gift unicorn boy over there."

Bracken rolled his eyes at the unappreciated nickname while Warren sighed. "I get it, I get it. It was dumb. Can we move on?"

"Did I win?"

Warren paused and then smiled and bowed his head.

"Okay. You win. I can't really top that one."

Vanessa kissed him on his nose. "Excellent," she declared. "I love winning."

Warren had to admit, this was an ending to _The Great Gifting War_ that he could appreciate.


	6. Wish

_This was inspired by jesussavedevenme's awesome Brackendra headcanons. And, of course, this turned out absolutely nothing like I had originally intended. I hope you like it! It's just a ficlet, but may evolve into a multi-ficlet thing. We'll see what happens over time._

* * *

"Wow, this is _incredible!_ " Kendra exclaimed as she exited the car, awe filling her entire demeanor. Bracken grinned at her enthusiasm. He'd hoped she would appreciate this particular venture.

"I'm glad you like it," he answered. "We should have an excellent view of the meteor shower from here."

"No doubt about that." Kendra smiled widely, then gestured to a grassy, flat space nearby. "Over there?" she asked.

Bracken agreed and opened the trunk to pull out a couple of blankets. Kendra retrieved pillows as well a backpack out of the back of the car, and the two of them walked to their chosen area together. They laid out the blankets on the ground, set the pillows on top of the blankets, and then laid down to observe the night sky.

This place was amazing. A completely unobstructed view of the stars, and they were far enough away from civilization that there wasn't any light pollution, either. Overhead was clear, with no clouds in sight. A gentle breeze blew over them as they idly chatted and observed the positions of the various constellations in the sky. All in all, it was a pretty perfect scene.

"Oh! There's one!" she pointed excitedly above them. "Make a wish."

"A wish?"

"Yes, a wish. You're supposed to make a wish when you see a shooting star."

"We're here to observe a _meteor shower_. Are you proposing that we walk away from this evening having made several hundred wishes?"

Kendra turned her head so that she could look at him. "What's wrong with that?"

Bracken grinned. "Absolutely nothing," he responded. "I only have one wish this evening, however, so I'll leave the rest of the wishes up to you."

"Oh? Only one wish? Do you feel like sharing?"

He clicked his tongue. "I thought the point of a wish was to keep it to yourself or else it mightn't come true."

Kendra laughed and returned her gaze to the burgeoning show above them. "Alright, fine. Keep your secrets."

"That's very kind of you." He reached for her hand and intertwined their fingers while they watched pricks of light streak across the sky. Some burned brighter than others, and some faded more quickly than others did. The sight was truly breathtaking but, at some point, Bracken found himself watching Kendra instead of the heavens.

She glowed in the starlight. Her happiness and contentedness only added to her glow, and Bracken was in awe of her. His heart was full.

"Kendra," he began after they'd been laying on the ground for quite a long while.

"Yeah?" she asked, her eyes flickering from above and resting on him.

"I love you," he said.

She smiled at him and leaned forward to give him a soft kiss. "I love you, too," she replied. "Thank you for bringing me here tonight. This is absolutely beautiful."

"Will you marry me?"

Kendra's expression froze as her brain promptly stopped functioning. "What?"

He raised their clasped hands and kissed the back of hers, then repeated his question. "Will you marry me?"

She sat up like a lightning bolt. "Wait, are you serious? Is this for real?"

Bracken also sat up, then reached for her other hand and held it in his. "I'm completely serious," he stated. "I promise. Kendra, I would be honored if you would agree to be my wife."

She threw her arms around his shoulders and squealed in happiness. "Yes!" she shouted. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, of course I will!"

Kendra peppered his face with kisses and he laughed as he held her close and committed everything about this moment to memory. He wanted to remember the joy. The way she shone in the darkness. The sound of her laughter as it joined his. The overwhelming feeling of love and serenity.

His wish for the evening had come true.


	7. Nightmares

_The setting for this is Dragonwatch compliant, about 2 years after book 2. (Because I'm apparently desperate for these kids to age up a little bit.) I hope it makes sense. This oneshot was prompted by jesussavedevenme. :)_

 _ **Dragonwatch spoilers are contained here.**_

* * *

"What are you doing up?"

Kendra walked over to Bracken and sat down on the couch next to him, snuggling into his side. "Couldn't sleep," she answered.

Bracken sighed. "Nightmares again?"

She yawned and nodded, then laid her head on his shoulder.

"About Seth?"

Kendra shrugged in response.

Bracken closed his book, then put an arm around her and rested his head on top of hers. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really," she answered, mindlessly picking at a button on her pajama shirt.

They sat in comfortable silence for a long while before Bracken reopened his book and picked up where he left off. Kendra squirmed closer and squinted at the words on the page, but her tired brain couldn't make sense of the letters. "What are you reading?" she asked.

" _Prince Caspian_ ," Bracken said. "It's a novel by C.S. Lewis and I really like it."

A light bulb seemed to go off in Kendra's mind as she interrupted him.

"Oh, with the Pevensie siblings. They help Caspian save Narnia." She yawned again and stretched her arms before snuggling back into Bracken's side.

"Yes," he replied. "I thought I had read it before, but it's not familiar to me after all."

"My mom used to read those books to Seth and I when we were small. Seth always fell asleep. I liked to imagine the things that were going on in the stories." A light smile crossed her face before it disappeared. She rubbed her hand over her eyes.

"You miss him," Bracken stated. It definitely wasn't a question.

"Yes," Kendra answered. She rubbed at her eyes again.

Bracken bit his lip. He'd been back with her for a grand total of two days thus far, and she had yet to talk to him about the loss of her brother. She usually avoided the subject of Seth like the plague - whenever anybody brought him up, she tended to either retreat into her own inner monologue and disengage from discussion or otherwise leave the room. This was the first time she'd willingly mentioned her brother in Bracken's presence.

He wanted to help her. He knew she had been having nightmares off and on since Zzyzx, and that the nightmares had only intensified and increased in number since Seth had been taken and brainwashed. She used to talk to him about her fears and worries. Now… now she seemed almost afraid to say anything.

"Kendra," Bracken began, looking at her instead of the book in his hands. "I want to help you, but you have to talk to me."

"I don't want to talk," she said.

"I think you need to."

"I don't want to."

He dropped his book on the floor and shifted his position so that he could fully embrace her. "Kendra. Please. Please let me help you."

She wiped a few loose tears which fell from her eyes. "What's there to say? It was hard enough when _you_ went missing. Then Seth…" she sniffled. "He _hates_ me now. And I don't know how to deal with that."

Silence fell, broken only by Kendra's sniffles as she struggled to maintain her composure.

"It's alright to cry, Kendra," Bracken assured her. "I'm right here."

He held her as she fell apart in his arms. She cried tears of despair and anguish, the sound of which broke Bracken's heart. He rubbed comforting circles into her back and leaned his cheek against the top of her head while she mourned the loss of her brother. Kendra clung to him as though he were her most vital lifeline.

Eventually she calmed. Bracken glanced at the clock on the wall and saw that it read 1:30 am. Her shoulders had relaxed and she was breathing evenly once more, but he couldn't fully tell whether she was awake or asleep. He hoped it was the latter - she'd been sleeping terribly for the past couple of years, or so he'd been told, and he'd witnessed her lack of sleep himself over the past couple of days since he'd been recovered. He was willing to hold her all night if that's what it took for her to finally rest.

"Bracken?"

He closed his eyes in disappointment. "Hmm?"

"Will you read to me?"

He perked up at her request. "Really?"

"Please." She moved out of the way so that he could gather the discarded book from the floor. He pulled her against himself once more before he opened it.

"I'm in the middle of a chapter," he said. "Would you like me to start over?"

"No, just wherever you are is fine. I'm kind of tired." Kendra closed her eyes and rested against his chest.

Bracken was pleased when he realized, not even ten minutes into reading, that Kendra had finally fallen asleep. He settled in, determined to watch over her for the rest of the night. Perhaps he'd be able to try and shield her from her tumultuous dreams as well.


End file.
